CHAPTER 14: THE YOGA OF THE THREE MODES OF NATURE

On the inherent qualities of material nature

(1) The Supreme Lord said: 'Again about the transcendental, I will tell you, of all knowledge the utmost knowledge, knowing which all the sages from this world attained. (2) Taking shelter of this knowledge, having attained My selfsame nature, one is not born at the time of creation, nor is one lost on annihilation.

(3) My channel of birth is the total material existence and of the Supreme in that I impregnate, creating the conditions of all living entities who find thereafter their existence, oh son of Bharata. (4) Of all who are born, oh son of Kuntî, of all the forms that manifest, I am the creator, the source of birth and the seed-giving father. (5) The modes of goodness [sattva], passion [rajas] and ignorance [tamas] are the qualities produced by material nature which condition, oh mighty armed one, this body of the imperishable living being. (6) Of them, the mode of goodness is the purest; it illumines without reactions, and conditions with a sense of happiness the feeling for knowledge, oh sinless one. (7) Know that the mode of passion is characterized by desires, born from attachment and longing, that bind, oh son of Kuntî, the one embodied to the outcome of the deeds in the past. (8) The mode of ignorance is the result of a lack of knowledge; know it as deluding all embodied beings, binding them to carelessness, indolence and [more than six hours of] sleep, oh son of Bharata.

(9) The mode of goodness conditions one to happiness, passion binds one to fruitive activities, oh son of Bharata, but from the ignorance that covers the knowledge one is bound to errors. (10) Then goodness prevails defeating passion and ignorance, then oh son of Bharata, ignorance does so with passion and goodness and then passion overrules goodness as well as the ignorance; this is how the modes of sattva, rajas and tamas are. (11) When to all the gates of the body the enlightenment of knowledge develops, at that time one says the mode of goodness is prevailing. (12) Greed, over-exertion, enterprising and restless desire all develop when the mode of passion predominates, oh chief of the Bhâratas. (13) Darkness, slowness, negligence and surely illusion too, manifest themselves when the mode of ignorance is developed, oh son of Kuru.

(14) When with the development of the mode of goodness the embodied one finds dissolution, then one attains the world of those who are pure and of great wisdom. (15) When one is in passion finding one's end, one takes birth among those who work for material results and  similarly when one is in ignorance one takes birth among the ignorant. (16) Of pious activities in the mode of goodness is said that one is purified, the mode of passion results in misery and feeblemindedness is the result of the mode of ignorance. (17) The way from the mode of goodness knowledge develops and greed surely develops from the mode of passion, so do illusion and certainly perplexity develop from the mode of ignorance. (18) Those in the mode of goodness rise up, those in passion stay in between while the ones in ignorance whose occupation is of an abominable quality go down. (19) When a seer properly sees that the doer is no one other than these three qualities to the modes of nature and knows the beyond, he is promoted to My spiritual nature. (20) Transcending all three qualities the embodied one will enjoy the nectar of being freed from the physical result of the distress of birth, death and old age.'

(21) Arjuna said: 'By which symptoms is the one that transcended the qualities recognized, oh master, what is his conduct and how does he rise above these three modes?'

(22-25) The Supreme Lord said: 'He who, despite of their development, does not hate the revelation [from goodness] nor the attachment [of passion] nor the illusion [of ignorance], oh son of Pându, nor desires to stop that development; one who, knowing that the qualities are acting, is never agitated by them staying the witness in continuing self-perception; he who equal in distress and happiness from within is equal about a clod, a stone or gold, who is the same towards what is desirable and what is undesirable and steady and equal under criticism and praise for himself; he who is equal in honor and dishonor and equal towards both sides of friends and enemies and is renounced in all his endeavors - he is said to be transcendental to the modes. (26) A person who unswerving renders service in devotion unto Me - he, transcending all these modes of nature, will rise to the spiritual platform. (27) For certain I am the base of the spiritual, the immortal and the imperishable, the original nature and the ultimate happiness.'

   

 



 

 

 



 
Filognostic* understanding of the Bhagavad Gîtâ of Order

Text 1

The Supreme Lord said: 'Again about the transcendental, I will tell you, of all knowledge the utmost knowledge, knowing which all the sages from this world attained.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

The supreme personality of the opulence said: 'Let me again tell you about that âtmatattva ruling over all knowledge, which is the first and best, and by the power of which the sages attained all the transcendental perfection there is to attain. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 2

Taking shelter of this knowledge, having attained My selfsame nature, one is not born at the time of creation, nor is one lost on annihilation.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Taking shelter of this spiritual knowledge, having attained the same as what I all am, one is not even born again at the time of creation , nor disturbed when annihilation takes place. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 3

My channel of birth is the total material existence and of the Supreme in that I impregnate, creating the conditions of all living entities who find thereafter their existence, oh son of Bharata.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

My channel of birth is the greater of nature and from the supreme spirit in it, I create everywhere the conditions for the living beings to exist, oh descendant of Bharata. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 4

Of all who are born, oh son of Kuntî, of all the forms that manifest, I am the creator, the source of birth and the seed-giving father.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Oh son of Kuntî, of all the species of life, of all the forms that manifested, I am the grand primal source, the absolute spirit, the father who gives the seed. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 5

The modes of goodness [sattva], passion [rajas] and ignorance [tamas] are the qualities produced by material nature which condition, oh mighty armed one, this body of the imperishable living being.

SANSKRIT:

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Goodness, passion and ignorance are the qualities resulting from this material nature which conditions, oh man of grip, the body of the one embodied. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 6

Of them, the mode of goodness is the purest, it illumines without reactions, and conditions with a sense of happiness the feeling for knowledge, oh sinless one.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Goodness is the purest of these qualities, it inspires to bloom free from reactions, and links the âtmatattva, the love of knowledge for the completeness, to the condition of happiness, oh sinless one. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 7

Know that the mode of passion is characterized by desires, born from attachment and longing, that bind, oh son of Kuntî, the one embodied to the outcome of the deeds in the past. 

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

You should know that the quality of passion is marked by desires resulting from attachment and longing; it is from them that the one embodied gets entangled in the consequences of what he did in the past, oh son of Kuntî. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 8

The mode of ignorance is the result of lack of knowledge; know it as deluding all embodied beings, binding them to carelessness, indolence and [more than six hours of] sleep, oh son of Bharata.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

The quality of ignorance deluding all living beings is that what follows a lack of knowledge: the negligence, indolence and sleepiness which tie one down, oh son of the Kuru dynasty. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 9

The mode of goodness conditions one to happiness, passion binds one to fruitive activities, oh son of Bharata, but from the ignorance that covers the knowledge one is bound to errors.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Goodness binds to knowledge, passion binds to profit-minded labor, but by the ignorance which covers the knowledge one is bound to errors, oh descendant of Bharata. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 10

Then goodness prevails defeating passion and ignorance, then oh son of Bharata, ignorance does so with passion and goodness and then passion overrules goodness as well as the ignorance; this is how the modes of sattva, rajas and tamas are.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

With the modes of goodness, passion and ignorance it is so that, oh descendant of Bharata, at one time goodness prevails defeating passion and ignorance, then passion overrules goodness and ignorance, and then again ignorance is most prominent relative to the goodness and the passion. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 11

When to all the gates of the body the enlightenment of knowledge develops, at that time one says the mode of goodness is prevailing.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

The goodness is strongest when in relation to all of the, what one calls, gates of the body - or to all the senses and their organs - the light of knowledge develops.27 (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 12

Greed, over-exertion, enterprising and restless desire all develop when the mode of passion predominates, oh chief of the Bhâratas

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Oh best of the Kuru line, when passion dominates, all kinds of symptoms develop like greed, overexertion, unsolicited action and uncontrollable desire. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 13

Darkness, slowness, negligence and surely illusion too, manifest themselves when the mode of ignorance is developed, oh son of Kuru.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

When the quality of ignorance is prominent it is murkiness, passivity, carelessness and even madness that manifests, oh son of the Kaurava family. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 14

When with the development of the mode of goodness the embodied one finds dissolution, then one attains the world of those who are pure and of great wisdom.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Finding destruction the one embodied who gained in strength to the mode of goodness, attains the world of those great in wisdom and purity. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 15

When one is in passion finding one's end, one takes birth among those who work for material results and similarly when one is in ignorance one takes birth among the ignorant.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

When one finds destruction in passion, life is resumed among those motivated for the profit; likewise the one who ended in ignorance is of a new life among the ignorant. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 16

Of pious activities in the mode of goodness is said that one is purified, the mode of passion results in misery and feeblemindedness is the result of the mode of ignorance.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Of virtuous deeds in the mode of goodness one finds the result of purification, so one says, but the result of passion is misery, while the result of ignorance consists of illusion. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 17

The way from the mode of goodness knowledge develops and greed surely develops from the mode of passion, so do illusion and certainly perplexity develop from the mode of ignorance.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

From goodness one finds the development of knowledge, from passion greed develops and from ignorance a lot of nonsense is found. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 18

Those in the mode of goodness rise up, those in passion stay in between while the ones in ignorance whose occupation is of an abominable quality go down.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Situated in goodness one rises up, in passion one stays in between and in ignorance being of an abominable quality one goes down. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 19

When a seer properly sees that the doer is no one other than these three qualities to the modes of nature and knows the beyond, he is promoted to My spiritual nature.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

A seer who knows of the supreme in relation to the qualities, and as well correctly sees that the doer is no other than these three qualities to the modes of nature, is promoted to my spiritual nature. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 20

Transcending all three qualities the embodied one will enjoy the nectar of being freed from the physical result of the distress of birth, death and old age.'

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Going beyond these qualities the one embodied will enjoy the nectar of being freed from the distressing physical consequences of starting a new life, of being old and of finding one's end.' (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 21

Arjuna said: 'By which symptoms is the one that transcended the qualities recognized, oh master, what is his conduct and how does he rise above these three modes?'

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

Arjuna said: 'Oh master of wisdom, by which symptoms is the one rising above these three qualities recognized, how does he behave and how does this going beyond the three modes take place?' (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 22-25

The Supreme Lord said: 'He who, despite of their development, does not hate the revelation [from goodness] nor the attachment [of passion] nor the illusion [of ignorance], oh son of Pându, nor desires to stop that development; one who, knowing that the qualities are acting, is never agitated by them staying the witness in continuing self-perception; he who equal in distress and happiness from within is equal about a clod, a stone or gold, who is the same towards what is desirable and what is undesirable and steady and equal under criticism and praise for himself; he who is equal in honor and dishonor and equal towards both sides of friends and enemies and is renounced in all his endeavors - he is said to be transcendental to the modes.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

The fortunate one said: 'He who doesn't hate the developing or not developing of enlightenment, of material progress and of the confusion to the modes, oh son of Pându; he who from the neutral never desires nor is agitated when the modes are acting upon him; he who, unwavering remembering himself, thus keeps his position being equal in distress and happiness and is indifferent whether it concerns a clod, a stone or a lump of gold; he who is the same towards what is popular and what is unpopular, and is steady and equal in being praised or defamed; he who is equal in honor and dishonor and is equal towards both the sides of friends and enemies and manages to renounce with whatever he does, he is said to be transcendental to the modes. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 26

A person who unswerving renders service in devotion unto Me - he, transcending all these modes of nature, will rise to the spiritual platform.

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

And he who, relating to me, never fails to be united in devotion and voluntarism; he, transcending all of the modes, will rise to the spirit of the absolute. (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

Text 27

For certain I am the base of the spiritual, the immortal and the imperishable, the original nature and the ultimate happiness.'

FILOGNOSTIC TRANSLATION

For I am the spiritual foundation of the imperishable, immortal, eternal and original nature as also the ultimate happiness.' (Sanskrit & tradition)

 

 

 

 

Versions consulted:

- A Song of Fortune One - A modern Gîtâ - the modern version of filognosy (also in mp3-audio).

- A Song of Fortune - A Classical Gîtâ - the classical version of filognosy.

- The Bhagavad Gîta-as-it-is by Swami Bhaktivedânta Prabhupâda (PDF-download).

- The Bhagavad Gîtâ-as-it-is: online (version 1.0).

- The Bhagavad Gita As It Is By His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (pdf-download).

- The Bhagavad Gita by the Bhagavad Gita Trust.

- Bhagavad Gita by Sanderson Beck.

- Bhagavad Gita by Ramanad Prasad (American Gita society).

- Srimad Bhagavad-gita - The Hidden Treasure of the Sweet Absolute (from the Vaishnav' S'rî Caitanya Saraswath math).

Sanskrit dictionary: (Monier-Williams' 'Sanskrit-English Dictionary').

 
 

 

 

Production and copyright of this translation: Anand Aadhar Prabhu                   
The filognostic translations are of the same author.                   
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